Kingdom of the Ants
by texashoser
Summary: She wants to feel in control again after the Doctor regenerates.


"There you are."

Rose looked up at the Doctor's smiling face. It's not the same one he flashed her when he came to dinner, but a reassuring one. Though she doesn't know if it's to reassure her that it is him or reassure himself that he can remember things like their spot on the rooftop of the Powell Estate. But does it belong to him now? Even if it's not entirely the same him?

Rose rubbed her eyes with the heel of her hands as her brain tried to explain again the Doctor's explanation of regeneration. Except there were so many words and she was really just tired.

"Rose?"

"Sorry," she muttered, before putting her hands in her lap. "I was thinking. And the view helps. Makes me feel a bit powerful seeing people down there looking like ants."

"Well, best not share that with them. In my experience humans don't like being called anything except humans," the Doctor replied as he stepped towards her. Slow steps. His hands were in his pockets. "Your mum thought you were hiding in the TARDIS when you didn't come in for lunch, but she just found me tinkering and asked me to look for you."

"Why not Mickey?"

"Why didn't Mickey find you?"

"No. Why didn't she ask Mickey?" Rose responded.

She inwardly winced as a hurt flashed in the Doctor's eyes.

"He wasn't around."

"Makes sense," Rose said. "He spent Christmas his ex-girlfriend instead of his current one and had to listen as I cried my eyes about..." She quickly snapped her jaw shut and looked everywhere the Doctor wasn't.

"I heard you. I may have been unconscious, but it doesn't mean I wasn't at least partially aware of what was going on around me," the Doctor told her softly. "I never left you, Rose. I may look a bit different, but I'll never leave you unless it was positively beyond my control or I was truly dead. Though I hope that the truly dead part isn't for a very, very long time. There are still quite a few places in this universe I haven't seen and a few I'd like to see again with these eyes. And many of them I'd like to see with you, Rose. Or see again. Like the view from here."

"You still feel the same," Rose murmured.

"About what, Rose?" The Doctor inquired gently as he crossed the space between himself and the young woman. "Do you want to know if I feel the same about you?"

"We were happy," Rose spat at him as she rose to her feet. "We had just figured things out. Then you had to change."

"We can still be happy," the Doctor informed her roughly. He winced as she flinched. "Rose, I'm sorry. The regeneration takes quite a bit out of me. I'll be right as rain in a few days." He crinkled his nose. "Though why would anyone want to be right as rain? It's rather wet and from my experience being soggy does put a damper on a few things. And usually makes humans ill if they don't get out of the rain quickly enough."

"Are you going to be doing that all the time?" Rose asked.

"What?"

"Rambling about nonsense when you should be kissing me."

He blinked at her owlishly.

"You want me to kiss you?"

"If you're still you and you still want me, then I want you to kiss me."

"But we were fighting," the Doctor stated with confusion on his face. "And I wanted to make the point that I was still me and that I still loved you even if you didn't entirely believe me. I did notice earlier that I have a bit of a gob and I supposed if used correctly I could get even a Dalek to realize that all it really needed was not to blow up the entire universe, but a cuddle with one of those stuff creatures you keep in your bedroom."

Rose smiled gently.

"Go on then."

He frowned.

"What? Convince a Dalek that all it needs is a good cuddle? I'm not sure if that's the first thing I should do in this new body. It still has a few quirks to work out. Like the talking thing. And why I suddenly have a craving for jam."

"No, you idiot. If you're the Doctor and you still love me then you should kiss me."

"That is a rather compelling argument. I believe you have convinced me, Rose Tyler."

His hands cupped her face and his lips found hers. It was a brief, promising kiss. The Doctor smiled down at her.

"They do look like ants," he whispered.

"Don't tell them that," Rose replied.


End file.
